This application is related to pending U.S. Pat. application Ser. No. 358,181, filed May 25, 1989.
1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to sanitation and personal health care equipment. More particularly, the invention is directed to equipment adapted for use by persons who have had a colostomy, urostomy, or other similar surgical procedure which produces a new bodily opening, or stoma, adapted for excretory functions.
2. State of the Art
Following ostomy surgery, an ostomy patient must wear a pouch or bag which is configured to cover the surgically created stoma or opening. Typically, the stoma is created in the general area of the abdomen. The bag is kept in place about the stoma by means of a belt worn around the patient's abdomen or waist. Due to the nature of their function and operation, ostomy bags must be periodically removed from the user and cleaned. After cleaning, the bag is subsequently reattached to the user. The removal, cleaning and reattachment operations are typically performed several times each day by an ostomy patient.
Recognizably, the cleaning of an ostomy bag requires considerable care in order to avoid the soiling and contamination of the individual cleaning the bag. Furthermore, contamination of the immediate environment surrounding the cleaning site is of concern. It is a matter of considerable importance that the waste materials be emptied from the bag efficiently and sanitarily and thereafter be directed to a waste disposal site without any undue contamination of either the individual cleaning the bag or the environment around the individual. A number of devices have been developed for assisting in the cleaning of ostomy bags. These devices generally include a specialized nozzle connected to a hose. The hose, in turn, is connected to a water source. Representative devices are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,194,506 (Voorhies), U.S. Pat. No. 2,223,563 (Koch), and U.S. Pat. No. 4,692,159 (Kuzemchak). A cleansing apparatus is also disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,668,227 (Kay). Few, if any, of the foregoing ostomy cleaning devices have specifically addressed the problem of disposing of the waste material which is emptied or flushed from the ostomy bag. Furthermore, prior cleaning devices generally have not focused on the visibility problems encountered by many ostomy patients during the removal and replacement of their ostomy equipment. These problems are known to be specifically acute when the stoma is located in a difficult area for the patient to see, or when the patient's ability to see the stoma is hampered by other physical disabilities the patient may have.
It would be very advantageous, therefore, to have an integrated means for assisting the ostomy patient removing, cleaning and replacing ostomy equipment. In addition, these means should be adapted for disposing of waste materials, emptied from the ostomy bag, and for conveniently storing cleaning and replacement equipment.